Deep Fine Leg

When Andrew Flintoff picked up his latest injury in the Indian Premier League, it was suggested that he would comfortably be fit for the World Twenty20 tournament and the Ashes. Now though, he has been ruled out of the former with there being increasing concerns over the latter.

It was announced yesterday that although Flintoff’s knee injury is on the mend, he will not be available for England’s World Twenty20 campaign next month. The all-rounder – who has been replaced by Adil Rashid – will continue his rehab to ensure that he is fit to face Australia.

To be honest though, I am starting to have my doubts about this. It has been setback after setback for the 31-year-old in the last few years and there is no way you could rule out another one. There is still over a month to go until the Ashes – plenty of time for another injury problem for Freddie.

This may come across as pessimism, but it is very realistic. There is no way anyone connected with England can claim that Flintoff will be fit for every single Ashes test. Then, you have to question how much of an impact he can have if he only plays a small part in the series.

Is it really of benefit to the England team if he keeps coming in and out of the side? Will this upset the momentum picked up in the first part of the summer? He won’t have played much cricket if he does declare himself fit – would he be at his best?

There is always a chance that he will raise his game when the Ashes come around I suppose. In 2005, he was on fire and seemed indestructible. Sadly though, we haven’t seen him like this since and we probably won’t ever again. This is a crying shame, but is a fact that England and Flintoff have had to face.

I hope Flintoff proves me wrong and manages to get himself fit and in form in time for the first test in Cardiff. However, after this latest setback, I am going to have to see it before I can believe it. With regards to Ashes bets, don’t be too quick to bet on Andrew Flintoff to excel, or even appear, in the Ashes.

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In the aftermath of taking his first test match wickets for England, Tim Bresnan has admitted that he will struggle to stay in the team when Andrew Flintoff returns to full fitness.

The England all-rounder is currently recovering from knee surgery and is expected to be fit enough to take part in this summer’s Ashes test cricket. This means that Bresnan – who has come in to replace Flintoff – is the most likely man to step aside.

Speaking about the prospect of Flintoff taking his place, Bresnan said that the Lancashire man is a ‘massive asset’ to this England team and that the selectors will find it hard to ignore him when he becomes available again.

Bresnan clearly admires Flintoff as a player because he went on to say that he is an ‘unbelievable cricketer’. This means that when he is able to return to the fold, Flintoff is ‘well within his rights’ to walk straight back into the team.

This doesn’t mean that Bresnan is giving up his place in Andrew Strauss’ line-up though, not by any means. He has revealed how he plans to continue ‘working hard to retain my place’.

How did Bresnan do in his two test matches for England then? Well, the team as a whole did brilliantly and being part of this winning team will do his chances of a run in the side no harm at all.

On a personal level, Bresnan wasn’t given too much to do in the first test and as such, failed to make an impact. Then, in the second test at the Riverside, he had to wait until the final day before he took his first wicket.

The 24-year-old then helped England secure victory by taking 3-45 after dismissing Brendan Nash, Fidel Edwards and Denesh Randin. It was
a good way to end the series for him and it will do his confidence no harm at all.

As for whether he can keep Flintoff out of the side, that is a different matter entirely. There are other slots in the team that aren’t certain though so if Bresnan manages to impress during the One Day Internationals and the ICC World Twenty20, there is no reason why he can’t line up alongside Flintoff against the Australians.

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